Many equate mobile self-checkout apps with big retailers like Amazon or Sam’s Club given the size of the technology investment required. But that’s not entirely the case, as the following Stores article reports on FutureProof Retail as an emerging player in this growing market.
Di Di Chan shares the lament of consumers everywhere. “I really like to shop,” she says, “and I hate waiting in line.” Retailers have long looked for ways to improve the checkout process, but their disdain for long lines pales in comparison with how customers feel about standing around waiting to pay for their products. FutureProof Retail was launched to do something about it.
Chan, FutureProof’s president, met CEO William Hogben in a philosophy club where they bonded over the value of time. Sharing a background in technology and app development, the two brought FutureProof into being in late 2013. “We decided to combine our philosophy, passion and ambition to change how people shop,” Chan says.
At its core, FutureProof is designed to bring the best of online shopping offline. Retailers can use the platform to offer shoppers a simple way to scan, pay and go. “It’s in-person ecommerce,” Chan says, “built on the foundation of convenience.”
Consumers today see convenience as the norm, not as a nicety: Everything from cars to prescriptions to concert tickets can be purchased online. But though ecommerce is a natural — and ubiquitous — extension of that shift toward convenience, it doesn’t necessarily have a death grip on consumers.
Mobile self-checkout is gaining in consumer popularity given the convenience and immediacy that it brings to the shopping experience. No doubt the concept has been proven, but the real challenge is whether a more cost-effective solution can be delivered for small and mid-market merchants. Providers of white label systems are now entering the marketplace, as seen with FutureProof Retail, and it will be worth watching how merchants respond.
Overview by Raymond Pucci, Director, Merchant Services at Mercator Advisory Group
